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We
would like to express our deepest appreciation to all of our
members for their support of the Chamber and, especially, to
our Enhanced Investors, some of whom are included below:
| New
Enhanced Investors
The Chamber is pleased to recognize
our newest Bronze Level Enhanced Investors:
Rob
Doll Nissan
1600 Box Road
Columbus, GA 31907
706-568-6971
Automobile Dealer
Humphreys & Associates
2605 West Britt David Road
Columbus, GA 31909
706-324-7711
General Contractor |
Continuous
Sponsors
AFLAC
Incorporated; BlueCross
BlueShield of Georgia; Columbus
Bank and Trust; Columbus
Regional Healthcare Systems, Inc.; Georgia
Power Company; Sprint;
St.
Francis Hospital; Synovus
Financial Corp.; TSYS;
W.C. Bradley Company
Silver Level:
Alexander
Electric Company; American
Consumer Products Corporation; Batson-Cook
Company; BellSouth
Telecommunications; Boral
Bricks, Inc.; Callaway
Gardens; Ben
Carter Properties, LLC; Clark
Realty Capital, LLC; Coldwell
Banker, Kennon, Parker, Duncan & Key Realtors; Colony
Bank; Columbus Water Works;
Flournoy
Development Company; Honeywell;
Jordan, Jones & Goulding;
The Overby Co., Inc.; Page,
Scrantom, Sprouse, Tucker & Ford; Palmer/Cay
Insurance; REMITCO;
Regions Bank of Georgia;
Schuster Enterprises, Inc.; Spectrum
Stores, Inc.; TIC Federal
Credit Union; Tom's
Foods; Warr Grading Contractor; The
Wexford Group International, Inc.
As a not-for-profit organization, the
Chamber provides the ideal venue for public-private
partnerships to maintain a pro-business and enhanced quality
of life in our region. While we
appreciate all of our members, many business leaders recognize
the value of investing more than their membership fees in the
Chamber’s mission to benefit the region. The Chamber’s
Enhanced Investor levels include Continuous, Platinum, Gold,
Silver, and Bronze Sponsors.
Our enhanced investors receive Chamber benefits in accordance
with the different levels of investments. We would like to
have the opportunity to meet with you and discuss the benefits
of being an enhanced investor or increasing the sponsor level
of your investment. Please contact Tom Scott, Ex. VP, Chamber/Community
Development, at 706-327-1566, ext. 45 or tscott@columbusgachamber.com.
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Use the Chamber
Use your membership in the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce to advertise your business by including the Chamber membership decal or logo in your advertising, on your website or on your printed materials. Many Chamber members are using the logo in their advertising and the membership decal on their websites. This is a great way to use the Chamber to help you grow your business. You can download the membership decal by clicking on the decal below.
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VoIP?
by EC/IT Committee member Tom Aldridge, Select Tel Systems, Inc.
Voice over the Internet, right? Not exactly. VoIP is Voice over
Internet Protocol. This means that a device is converting our analog voice sound
waves into an Internet Protocol format. The Internal Protocol format allows the
voice Internet packets to be converged with the data packets that already are
traveling over our Networks.
Some types of Networks are Local Area
Networks, Wide Area Networks, and the World Wide Web. Local Area
Networks interconnect IP computers at one location. Wide Area
Networks interconnect IP devices in multiple sites over a
customer's private network, across town, across the state,
across the country, and around the world. The World Wide Web
interconnects Internet Services Providers, ISPs, all over the
world.
VoIP
traffic can be carried over any network using any two computers
with the appropriate software and accessories. The sound quality
of the call may vary due to network capabilities between the two
people in the conversation. For example the sound quality of a
conversation over dial up speeds may be less desirable compared
to a conversation over a higher speed connection such as a cable
modem or faster connection.
There are several methods of converging VoIP
with private Data Networks. The first involves adding devices to
existing equipment. The telephone system, via the gateway is
(enabling device), converts the voice into IP packets.
Maintenance plus moves, adds, and changes to the system continue
to be done by the telephone vendor due the proprietary functions
of the system.
The second methods overlays the existing data
Network with several add on devices to allow call management,
voice mail, automatic call distribution, conferencing, etc..
This method can be somewhat complex and involves disk space on
Servers and other devices to accomplish the VoIP function.
The third involves a pure IP Switchboard that
converges the needed devices with the data Network. This
involves fewer devices, one server, unified messaging, ease of
use, ease of management, and a distributed architecture that
creates a single image over the multiple sites. The IP phones
perform the analog to IP conversion and the individual call
manager client resides on each desktop allowing the individual
user to customize their call handling to suit their particular
needs. This arrangement can be administered and maintained from
any browser interface to the network and greatly reduces the
time and the expense of moves, adds, and changes.
The convergence to VoIP is being driven by
several factors. The enhanced features of the system are one
factor and it increases productivity and is user friendly. One
such feature "unified messaging" places all the voice
messages on the terminal screen where the user can visual see
the voice mails pending. The Total Cost of Operation is
generally lower for a VoIP system. The cost of moves, adds, and
changes goes away since the telephone vendor no longer has to do
them for the business. Toll bypass is no longer a significant
factor due to the low cost long distance charges.
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Get a seat at the table by participating in
the 2007 Membership Directory being produced by Columbus and
the Valley Magazine. For more information download
the flyer or call: Columbus and Valley Magazine at
706-324-6214
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Drugs
Don't Work (DDW) Workshop
Apr. 11, 9:00-11:00 am
Topic: "Alcohol Abuse," by Debbie Josey
Location: Chamber, 1200 6th Avenue
Cost: $25 members
$40 non-members
Contact: Marie Cordero at mcordero@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566 ext. 28.
Chamber
Power Lunch
Apr. 13, 12:00-1:30 pm
Sponsors: Nextel and Jason's Deli
Location: CSU Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center
Program: "How Well are You Communicating?" by Mike Gaymon
Media host: Rock 103
Cost: $7 members with reservations
$9 members without reservations
$15 non-members
Reservations: Crystal Limbaugh at climbaugh@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566 ext. 11 by Friday, Apr. 7
Eye
Opener Breakfast
Apr. 27, 7:00-8:30 am
Sponsor: The Pastoral Institute
Location: Columbus Convention and Trade Center
Program: Columbus Children, Youth and Family Coalition-Family Connection, by
Junie Christian
Cost: $12 members with reservations
$15 members without reservations
$30 non-members
Reservations: Crystal Limbaugh at climbaugh@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566 ext. 11 by Friday, Apr. 21
Business
After Hours
May 4, 5:30-7:00 pm
Sponsor: Houlihan's
Location: 800 Front Avenue
Media host: 101.3 The Beat
Cost: $5 members with reservations
$7 members without reservations
$10 non-members
Reservations: Crystal Limbaugh at climbaugh@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566 ext. 11 by Friday, Apr. 28
May
5-Annual Chamber Membership Golf Tournament - Cinco de Mayo
Event Sponsor: Hughston Orthopedic Hospital
Location: Maple Ridge Golf Club
Cost: $500 per team 8 a.m. tee / $550 per team 2 p.m. tee
Four-member teams receive two golf carts, lunch/snacks, one Mulligan and a goody
bag per player.
Sponsorships: Eagle Sponsor-$1400, Driving Range or Putting Green Sponsors-$600,
Tee Sponsor-$500 and Golf Cart Sponsor-$100.
New event: "The Great American Ball Drop" will be held following the
golf tournament. Numbered balls will be dropped-the first ball in the hole (or
nearest the hole) wins $1,000!
Contact: Becky Gordon at 706-327-1566 ext. 20 or bgordon@columbusgachamber.com.
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For more listings of Chamber Events please check out the
2006
Chamber Events Calendar (PDF).
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Starting
April 3, 10-digit dialing goes
into effect  Don't
forget, instead of the seven digits you have been dialing, you will need to add
the three-digit area code to make a phone call starting April 3. It is similar
to how many cell phone numbers are dialed now.
What else should you be thinking of for your business and
home?
- Reprogram your speed dial/preset telephone numbers, dial-up
Internet connections and any call block or call forwarding functions to
include the area code.
- Ensure that the telephone numbers in your wireless phone's
address book are 10 digits, including the area code.
- Update your fax machine speed dial numbers to include the
area code.
- Check with your home or business security system provider
for any programming changes to accommodate 10-digit dialing.
- Reprint your checks, stationary, business cards, business
signage or any other printed material if you do not have your area code
listed with your telephone number.
- If you are a business owner, contact your PBX telephone
system provider before the April 3 deadline to reprogram the equipment prior
to the mandatory 10-digit dialing deadline.
 Ensure
that your credit card processing machine is updated.
The growth in the population and cell phones necessitated the
change to a 10-digit dialing system rather than an overall change of the area
code.
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The SBA loan
program "Community Express" workshop set
for
April 12
A free workshop on the Community Express
Loans program will be held April 12 from 6-8 p.m. at the
Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, 1200 Sixth
Avenue. This loan program offers loans of $5,000 to
$50,000 to small business startups and expansions.
Loan applications will be taken on site
by Business Loan Express (BLX) an SBA Preferred Lender.
The Community Express Loan Program is a pilot program
designed by the SBA and the National Community
Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC). The Community Express Loan
Program requires no collateral and no business plan. There
is no penalty for early payoff of the loan.
Under the pilot, the program is offered
to pre-designated geographic areas serving mostly low and
moderate income areas and minority, women and
veteran-owned small businesses. The program also includes
technical and management assistance, which is designed to
help increase the loan applicant's chances of success.
The workshop is being co-sponsored by
Columbus Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the
Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce with support
by volunteer counselors with the Service Corps of Retired
Executives (SCORE). Both SCORE and the SBDC are technical
assistance providers to borrowers under the loan program.
To expedite the process for existing
businesses, please bring your last two years business and
personal tax returns and current business and personal
financial statements. Applications are approved based on
credit scoring models which indicate past personal payment
history. For businesses with less than two full years of
operation, 10 percent equity will be required for the loan
package.
Pre-registration is encouraged since
seating is limited. You can register online at http://www.sba.gov/idc/groups/public/documents/ga_atlanta/
ga_registration.html,
or by calling the Columbus SBAC at 706-569-2651.
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Partners In
Education Pratt & Whitney and Bytewise assist
Northside High School with their FIRST robotics
competition.
The FIRST (For Inspiration and
Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics
Competition is an exciting, multinational competition that
teams professionals and young people to solve an
engineering design problem in an intense and competitive
way. This is an annual robotics competition designed to
spark the interest of students in engineering and
technology.
In 2006, the competition will reach more
than 28,000 high-school-aged students on more than 1,125
teams in 33 regional events. Teams come from Brazil,
Canada, Ecuador, Israel, Mexico, the U.K., and almost
every U.S. state. The competitions are high-tech spectator
sporting events, the result of lots of focused
brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicated mentoring,
project timelines and deadlines.
The Northside High School team
"Flying Pumpkins" participated in the
international competition held March 16-18 in Atlanta. For
more information on the Northside High School Team
"Flying Pumpkins, go to their website at www.patriotrobotics.com.
For more information about the Partners In Education
program, please contact Phyllis Lott at plott@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566 or visit www.partnersineducationcolumbusga.com.
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| Department of the
Army and Clark Pinnacle celebrate groundbreaking at Fort Benning |
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| The 36th Engineers took down the first
corner of the old housing at McGraw Manor. |
During the March 22 groundbreaking ceremony at McGraw
Manor, the first of 11 neighborhoods to be redeveloped, William A. (Bill)
Armbruster, deputy assistant secretary of the Army (privatization and
partnerships), talked about how public-private partnerships have proven to
be of great benefit to military families and is an important way for our
nation to show its gratitude for their service. Fort Benning Family
Communities LLC (FBFC), a partnership between Cark Pinnacle and the
Department of the Army, will plan, operate and build military family
housing communities at Fort Benning and Camp Frank Merrill, Dahlonega, Ga.
More than $467 million was raised by the partnership to demolish 2,110
outdated homes, construct 2,377 new homes and renovate 1,560 historic and
non-historic homes. When the development and
construction activities are complete in approximately 10 years, Clark
Pinnacle will continue to manage an end-state inventory of
4,200 homes throughout the remaining 40 years of the
project. The total cost for the project is estimated to be more
than $650 million. To date, the development, construction and property
management teams have hired approximately 90 full-time employees from the
region. |
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| March
Hometown Hero |
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| (L-R) Jack
Ginter, Moon Family properties presents Ed
Gaffney, owner and president of Automated
Door Ways, Inc., the Hometown Hero award
at the March 9 Power Lunch. |
Automated Door Ways, Inc.
received the Hometown Hero award at the Chamber
Power Lunch March 9. Automated Door Ways, Inc.
was founded in February 2005 by owner and
President Ed Gaffney. In just one year, the
company has grown to include 14 employees,
including two salesmen and eight technicians, as
well as a fleet of seven service vans.
The company is an independent
distributor of automatic pedestrian, rolling
steel, speed roll-up and garage doors. Many of
the best manufacturers and suppliers in the
industry are provided by Automated Door Ways,
Inc. In addition, the company specializes in
repairing virtually any type of door drawing
from their complete inventory of parts.
Located at 506 Manchester
Expressway, B-3, Automated Door Ways, Inc.
services Alabama, central Georgia and the
Florida panhandle. Its customer base is varied,
ranging from small independent grocery stores to
large hospitals and military bases.
To be eligible for the
Hometown Hero award, recipients must be members
of the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of
Commerce, have a current business license, be
locally owned or operated and have been in
business for at least one year. For more
information, please contact Marie Cordero at mcordero@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566.
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| EBCO
Battery Company named Small Business Giant |
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| (L-R)
Mike Gaymon, president and CEO of
the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber
of Commerce, presents a framed
plaque to Andy Waddell, owner of EBCO
Battery
Company, for recognition
of the Small Business Giant award at
the March 23 Eye Opener Breakfast. |
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EBCO Battery Company was
recognized at the Chamber's Eye Opener Breakfast
March 23 as the Small Business Giant of the
month. From the outside, EBCO may be recognized
for its national trademarks, such as EBCO®,
EXCELLO®, ALWAYS STARTING SOMETHING®, or even
LITTLE EBBY®, or for stocking more than 1000
types of batteries and accessories. Perhaps you
know that its major brand, EXCELLO® was first
produced on Andrews Road in Columbus in the
spring of 1946, some 60 years ago.
Not so well known is that EBCO
sells many other brands of batteries, such as
Panasonic, Energizer, PowerWheels, Black &
Decker and Odyssey, and batteries for categories
such as cell and cordless phones, camcorders and
laptops. EBCO's sales of these types are up over
50% this year over last, and growing.
But the real story is EBCO's
people. Company President Andy Waddell has led
the company for 35 years. Vice President Brenda
Crain, with EBCO for more than 31 years, says
EBCO is blessed with good people, and the
company works to reciprocate this loyalty. Of
eleven associates, nine have more than 266 years
of battery experience.
In celebration of their 60
year anniversary, everyone is invited to EBCO's
Open House, 4017 Warm Springs Road, Tuesday,
March 28, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Small Business Giant Award
is selected by a committee of volunteers at the
Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
The decision is based not only on the success of
the business, but also on the contributions made
to the community by the company's owners and
employees, job creation, economic value, and
contributions to the overall quality of life.
For more information, please contact Marie
Cordero at mcordero@columbusgachamber.com
or 706-327-1566.
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---Congratulations---
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| Hannan
Elementary School Magnet Academy was one of only 20 schools in
the state to receive the distinction of 2006 Georgia School of
Excellence. State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox said,
"These are the schools that are getting it done." Hannon
was recognized for its commitment to excellence and continued
improvement. The Georgia Department of Education has awarded the
School of Excellence for twenty-six years. This marked the third
year that the selection criteria were closely aligned with
"No Child Left Behind." The selection was based on
student achievement and overall improvement. The awards will be
presented May 5 in Atlanta. |
---Grand Openings---
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| Cartridge
World, one of the largest retailers of cartridge
refilling services in the printer cartridge industry, recently
opened its newest franchise location in Columbus, Georgia. The
store at 2501 Whittlesey Blvd. brings a convenient and reliable
cartridge refilling concept to the Columbus community. Consumers
and businesses can drop off their cartridges for inkjet and laser
printers, photocopy and fax machines at the store where they are
refilled by their knowledgeable staff. The typical savings is up
to 50% of the retail price of a new cartridge. In addition, you
will be helping to protect the environment by recycling
cartridges. For more information, please visit www.columbuscartridgeworld.com
or call 706-507-3943. |
 First
Georgia Banking Company broke ground on its new site
on Veterans Parkway, March 9. Larry Cardin, president, celebrated
the event with a large crowd of business and community leaders.
Bruster's Ice Cream and Dinglewood were also in attendance to help
with the celebration where both children and adults enjoyed the
festivities. First Georgia Banking Company is "A New Bank
Serving You the Old Way" with great rates from the start and
excellent customer service. For more information, call
706-563-7884 or visit www.firstgabnk.com. |
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| MEA Federal
Credit Union celebrated the Grand Opening of their new home
office March 16 at 6333 Whitesville Road. Members can expect ease of
use as well as fast and efficient service with the advanced
technology offered, including the lobby "Express Teller"
and four video-based remote teller units. The remote teller units
are similar to a drive-through; however, members and tellers
communicate via a two-way video with optional privacy phones to take
care of basic financial transactions such as deposits and
withdrawals. All four MEA branch locations are open Monday, Tuesday,
Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. and Wednesday from 10:30 a.m.
to 6 p.m. For more information, please visit www.meafcu.org
or call 706-563-5002. |
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